Project Build Up (PBU) is a Grant and Community Support Initiative funded by OPGS and administered by Health Resources in Action (HRiA). PBU is designed to strengthen the capacity of outpatient substance use or gambling treatment agencies to provide or promote problem gambling treatment services.

In April, we had the chance to connect with Maya Williams, a clinician at Steppingstone Inc. and attendee of the PBU Learning Academy: Impacts of Trauma on Problem Gambling and Recovery. Maya is also a planning committee member for the PBU Learning Academy: Promoting and Providing Problem Gambling Treatment Services to Black and African Americans.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Tell us about your position as a clinician at Steppingstone Inc.

Maya Williams: I've been clinician at Steppingstone Inc. since I graduated from my master’s program, so I started in June 2020 during the pandemic. Because of everything that was going on at the time, I was working via telehealth, and then in August 2021, I started to do telehealth and in-person therapy. 

I’ve had many different positions here. I was the vice chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council. I was also chair of Culture Chat, where I located and invited individuals come in and present different cultures and discuss their advocacy for mental health. For example, I requested individuals from the Women’s Center come in and discuss the services that they provide. I've also had my own peers, who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, to present and discuss different treatment modalities for our clients that could be utilized. I'm also the Tobacco Education Coordinator, the LGBTQIA+ liaison, and a problem gambling specialist.

How did you first get engaged with Massachusetts Technical Assistance Center for Problem Gambling Treatment (M-TAC)?

Maya: My previous supervisor was a Clinical Director of our Outpatient Clinic when I first arrived at Steppingstone Inc., and she told me about a grant we had received from Project Build Up and how she was looking for people to become certified and educated in problem gambling. I did a 60-hour training and thought this was wonderful; I would love to become more involved with this work and started to educate myself and others more about this issue. Within a year, I became certified as a problem gambling specialist in Massachusetts. The first Project Build Up training I attended was the Asian American Culture and Problem Gambling in Massachusetts, and since then, I believe I have attended almost every one that they’ve held.

What have been your most valuable experiences attending the PBU Learning Academy trainings.

Maya: The people. The atmosphere. The education that I gained and the experiences that I've learned from and have been able to utilize in my own clinical skills and life. Networking as well too. I was able to meet Dr. Deborah Haskins and Dr. Sandra Adell at the last PBU Learning Academy where we were all presenters. When I was conducting research about African American individuals who specialize in problem gambling in America, I did not find anyone but them. It was an honor to meet them and present alongside them.

Following your experience as an attendee of the Learning Academy, how did you get involved as a member of the planning committee for the PBU Learning Academy: Promoting and Providing Problem Gambling Treatment Services to Black & African Americans?

Maya: They asked me. It was Fall of 2022, and they said, “Hey, I know you want to participate in this learning academy, but you already participated in it. We have a better opportunity for you.” I thought they were just going to ask me to be a participant in another upcoming academy, but they actually asked me to not only to join the committee but to present.

What were your most valuable experiences being a part of the PBU Learning Academy: Promoting and Providing Problem Gambling Treatment Services to Black & African Americans?

Maya: The most valuable experience was meeting like-minded people who cared about the exact same thing. These were all people of color, specifically African Americans or black individuals, who specialize in problem gambling. This is something that we want to build and help tackle within our communities. We all came from different backgrounds and different parts of the country, and we all met in the exact same spot during that training.